The Gospel of Mary of Magdala: Jesus and the First Woman Apostle. By Karen L. King

The Gospel of Mary offers an intriguing insight into an early church community. Karen L. King tells the story of the recovery of this remarkable gospel and offers a new translation. This brief narrative presents a radical interpretation of Jesus' teachings as a path to inner spiritual knowledge. It rejects his suffering and death as a path to eternal life and exposes the view that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute for what it is - a piece of theological fiction. The Gospel of Mary of Magdala offers a fascinating glimpse into the conflicts and controversies that shaped earliest Christianity.
While Mary herself was not the author of the gospel bearing her name (it almost surely dates to the second century), and we can't even be sure that a woman wrote it, it likely reflects theology developed at least in part by women.